Konstanz

As much as we loved the time we had in Ulm, it was time for us to move on to the next stop on our journey. We will now be leaving the Danube and heading south to the famous Lake Constance. Our plan is to ride clockwise around this huge inland sea, starting and finishing in the city of Constance (or is it Konstanz ?).

Our first task was to get our group of 8 and their huge pile of luggage from our hotel in the centre of Ulm, to the railway station. Due to our advancing ages and deteriorating state of health, the decision was made to order two taxis to help us get to the station without further ruining our bodies.

After checking out of the hotel, we waited for the two taxis to arrive. We didn't have to wait long before two luxurious Mercedes Benz station wagons cruised to a stop near the front door. It looks like being a taxi driver is quite a prosperous occupation in Germany.

We had been previously told by the helpful lady at hotel reception that the fare would be 8 Euro. Not bad we thought. The luggage was piled aboard, and soon we were on our way. During the short journey I had been watching the meter to make sure we were charged the correct amount. When we arrived at the station, the meter registered 9.70 Euros. This was a bit higher than we expected, but we could pay 10 Euro and thus allow a small tip.

It was at that point that a quick push on a secret button somewhere magically doubled the price shown to almost 18 Euro. Strange but true. I have seen some shifty taxi operators in my time, but this was blatant extorsion. Carol also noticed the deception, but did not know what to say. We paid the inflated amount, but it really left a sour taste in our mouths. Now we knew how the taxi company could afford such expensive vehicles.

When the second taxi pulled up, we found that their driver had only charged 12 Euro. Apparently his vehicle did not have the secret "daylight robbery" button.

We managed to manhandle our luggage to the correct station platform, and then load it onto the correct train. That was the easy part. Finding our allocated seats and then finding anywhere to store our luggage - that was the real challenge. About 10 minutes was spent dangerously wobbling around the swaying carriage, while trying to locate a numbered seat and avoid falling into some random German's lap.

Somehow we survived the 60 minute ride to Friedrichshafen, but it was a somewhat stressful trip. At the destination, we then had the challenge of having to quickly unload our mountain of luggage onto the platform. We were all glad to be out in the brilliant sunshine and fresh air.

The next stage was to catch a ferry across Lake Constance (The Bodensee) to Constance city. That was a dream by comparison to the train trip. The voyage was smooth and fast, and 1 hour later we were walking off the boat in Constance.

Although it was too early to check in to our hotel, we decided to at least drop our luggage there. It was only a short walk from the ferry terminal, and when we found the hotel, our luggage was not the only thing that was dropped. The opulence of the hotel entrance and foyer was not what we were expecting. The Budget Ibis it certainly was not.

All around was polished wood, proclaiming a long and proud history. The breakfast room was enough to send the females into raptures and a session of rapid photo taking. I think it would be safe to say that everyone was happy.

The rest of the day was spent wandering the area near the hotel. Initial impressions of the city were extremely favourable, and the location by the side of the lake was breathtaking.

In the evening, the clear skies gave the 3/4 moon a chance for us to see how different it was from the moon we are familiar with in Australia.

Tomorrow is a free day to further explore the area near Constance.Read more